Chapter 30
If the Empire had ‘Divine Artifacts,’ the Church had ‘Holy Relics.’
There were three of each, and I was wearing all of the Divine Artifacts.
A laurel crown, a robe, and a famed sword.
Equipment so powerful that it could turn Hans, the shepherd boy from a rural village, into a veteran knight.
Even such Divine Artifacts were mere rare artifacts compared to the Holy Relics.
Of course, this was only true a thousand years ago.
A thousand years later, many things had changed.
First of all, all the Holy Relics of the Church had been lost.
I was not a religious person, so I had no interest in the whereabouts of the Holy Relics.
I had never bothered to look for them, so I never expected to find a sealed Holy Sword in a place like this.
The process of finding the sealed Holy Sword was quite simple.
A lone coffin buried in a place where ghouls and Skeleton Knights respawned quickly.
Inside that coffin was a rusty sword, and that rusty sword was none other than the sealed Holy Sword.
“Fera, is that an item?”
I shared the item information window with Suzuka, who had come close to me without my noticing.
―――
[Rusty Sword Corrupted by a Malevolent Aura]
*Unappraised
―――
“Unappraised?”
“It seems you need an Appraiser’s skill from a side job to see its information.”
Even with the appraisal skill, there was no way to lift the seal of the Holy Sword.
The appraisal skill only revealed information about unappraised items.
“So, this is why Appraisers are needed.”
I subtly asked Suzuka, who was staring intently at the sealed Holy Sword.
“Do you want it?”
“No, my inventory is full.”
True, we had accumulated a lot of byproducts from hunting.
As a result, her inventory was on the verge of overflowing.
From the looks of it, even touching the sealed Holy Sword seemed unpleasant.
‘Should I just leave it as it is?’
The true form of the Goddess Statue, a transcendent being, was only called a goddess in name.
She was the Object of Destruction, the most dangerous enemy in this other world.
With the Church freed from her influence, many things had changed under the hands of the Saintess.
She had killed the hero, who had been brainwashed by the Goddess, with her own hands.
And she buried the Holy Sword, a byproduct of the Object of Destruction, in this place.
‘Still, it’s a growth-type weapon.’
Although it bore the grandiose title of a Holy Sword, it had lost most of its power due to being neglected for so long, combined with the Saintess’s religious reformation.
Moreover, it had even been sealed, so using the Holy Sword properly would require significant time and effort.
Taking all of that into account, I concluded that it was fine to leave it here.
‘Who would have thought the Saintess would personally execute the hero?’
The execution of the hero, who had fallen under the Goddess’s brainwashing and corruption.
It was the first thing the Saintess did when she initiated the religious reformation.
“I’ll stop here for today.”
I had enjoyed playing so much that I had lost track of time, and I wanted to keep going, but—
Since finding the sealed Holy Sword, it had been on my mind.
There could be more things like this.
“Oh, are you leaving already?”
“‘Already’ is a bit much; the sun is about to rise.”
I sent a friend request to Suzuka as a farewell gesture.
Suzuka, who had seemed disappointed, smiled as she accepted the friend request.
“Then, see you later!”
“Yes. Let’s play together next time.”
I logged out, promising to meet again.
***
After the official release, Akare was on a path of unprecedented success.
Meanwhile, the PC gaming industry was facing an all-time slump.
The sudden emergence of the first virtual reality game, Akashic Records.
It was like a massive meteor that crashed into the age of dinosaurs.
Even without the title of the first virtual reality game—
In terms of gameplay and completeness, it lacked nothing.
However, not everyone had come to play the game for enjoyment.
[Indie Minor Game Gallery]
―――
[Title] The Obsidian Staff Price is Insane LOL
(Real-money trading site screenshot)
Is 200 million won really the right price for a level 20 staff?
If I had known, I would’ve leveled a Priest and farmed the Cradle of Dark Magic runs.
Likes 450 Dislikes 222
―――
[Comments 352]
Is it because it’s the early phase? Prices are super inflated.
ㄴWith that, you can breeze through to level 30.
ㄴIf it’s just hype, it wouldn’t sell at that price, dammit.
ㄴYou can’t even get it once you’re out of the level range.
Spending 200 million is nice if you want to hunt comfortably.
ㄴWhales gonna whale~
ㄴBut if you farm just that, you get an instant 200 mil?
ㄴIf you’re lucky, easy million a month LOL
―――
It all started with the real-money trade of an item called the ‘Obsidian Staff.’
The boss of the Cradle of Dark Magic dungeon drops the Obsidian Staff at a very low probability.
The performance of this Obsidian Staff was overwhelmingly better than other staffs of the same level range.
With just one Obsidian Staff, it was possible to level up quickly and comfortably up to level 30.
―――
[Title] Isn’t there seriously a problem with the Obsidian Staff?
The Cradle boss is level 17, and based on the appropriate level range (-5 ~ +5)
The Obsidian Staff doesn’t drop at all starting from level 23.
So, the demand is insanely high, but the supply can’t keep up.
Probability adjustment << Should be removed to increase supply; big thumbs up.
Likes 150 Dislikes 1999
―――
[Comments 561]
What’s up with the rice-corn drifters?
ㄴHope all those rice-coin scammers die.
ㄴI’m a mage, and yeah, supply for the Obsidian Staff is definitely low.
ㄴI’m a mage, too. Special note: rice-corn farmer.
Thanksgiving << A festival for the rice-corn farmers LOL
ㄴWhat nonsense LOL
ㄴThis is so funny LOL
ㄴPriests, startled, immediately hit the back button repeatedly.
―――
For the newly formed economy to stabilize, sufficient time was needed.
The same was true for the Obsidian Staff; it was an issue that would be resolved over time.
But due to Akare’s overwhelming popularity, the prices formed far exceeded reasonable limits.
―――
[Title] Sharing the ultimate rice-coin farming route
- Create a Priest character.
- Run the Cradle up to level 23.
- Delete the character.
Repeat endlessly.
(Monthly income proof image)
It takes a day to recreate a character, but worth it?
Likes 250 Dislikes 1446
―――
[Comments 447]
Priest << Ultimate rice-coin farming job.
ㄴJob perception is screwed LOL
ㄴThere’s already a low population, sigh.
ㄴPlease, stop this.
The proof image is photoshopped (link to accusation post).
ㄴWhat proof? Really?
ㄴWas this just rice-corn viral marketing?
ㄴAlmost deleted my character; what a relief.
―――
The most optimized job for farming the Obsidian Staff was the Priest.
Because of this, the image of Priests fell to rock bottom and became half a common enemy.
Priest = rice-coin scammer, rice-corn farmer.
It was only natural that Priests playing the game properly felt unfairly treated.
A job they raised with affection suddenly turning into a symbol of rice-coin scamming?
Psychologically, it was inevitable that people would lose attachment to their characters of that job.
Even if they tried to appeal otherwise, public opinion was no longer on the Priests’ side.
Isolation from the outside eventually led to internal strife and attacks.
―――
[Title] It’s all because of that Priest from Suzuka’s stream
(Image of Fera extending a hand to a zombie)
The method of using a Priest’s heal as a massive damage-dealing attack on undead.
Since this was shown on stream, the rice-coin farming rate among Priests skyrocketed.
You could even say that Priest opened the age of rice-coin farming.
The ruined image of Priests was just a bonus.
Likes 565 Dislikes 404
―――
[Comments 411]
Are rice-priests targeting regular players now?
ㄴGetting scratched by a rice-priest, damn.
ㄴThe term rice-priest sounds insane.
ㄴLOL unbelievable.
What kind of talk is that to the rice-farming Saintess?
ㄴWho’s this rice-farming Saintess now?
ㄴThe perception of Priests is truly crap.
ㄴGive it up; it’s too late.
―――
The person who spread the information that a Priest’s heal was deadly against undead monsters.
Wait, that was me.
“I feel wronged.”
I felt wronged.
Using heal as a massive damage dealer on undead?
It was already widely known, information that anyone who needed it knew.
The low population of Priests just meant that strategies and information didn’t spread quickly.
So, I revealed it openly during Suzuka’s stream.
I never imagined it would come back like this.
I feel wronged, so wronged.
“Greetings, rice-farming Saintess.”
“What are you saying, Aka-chan?”
How did the Director’s alt end up with the nickname ‘rice-farming Saintess’?
I expected some mention in the community after being associated with Suzuka.
But I never thought I’d earn a grand nickname like ‘rice-farming Saintess.’
Really.
“Aka-chan, should we stop the water supply?”
Things escalating this far was unexpected.
At this rate, who knew how far the flames would spread?
“Disapprove. Not recommended.”
“Aka-chan, stop looking at the forums.”
“Question? Master is more addicted to the forums.”
I couldn’t argue back, so I stayed silent.
‘Should I stop the trade?’
Blocking the trade could resolve the rice-coin issue immediately.
But it didn’t seem like a good method. It felt like it would damage the sense of freedom.
‘Maybe I shouldn’t intervene.’
It seemed like a problem that would resolve itself over time.
After all, rice-coin activities were a violation of the terms of service.
It would be enough to suspend accounts for violating the terms.
I had no intention of recklessly enforcing this.
‘Let’s set a standard.’
If the rice-coin activity reached the level of a workshop, I would immediately impose a suspension.
A little pocket money-making could be allowed.
But rice-coin activities at the workshop level were unacceptable.
“Ugh… Is there anyone who could set a clear standard for me…?”
Aka-chan had already sensed the danger and left the scene.
Tsk. This is why I don’t like sharp little ones.
Someone who could set a clear standard and manage things based on it.
I moved to where such a person was.
The library that housed most books related to modern knowledge.
Books were piled up in the centre of the library.
In front of them, the Crown Prince was flipping through books, seeking knowledge.
“How have you been lately?”
“Thanks to you, I’ve been spending my time quite enjoyably.”
“It looks like it.”
Ahem.
After clearing my throat once, I explained to the Crown Prince the reason for my visit.
“For someone trying to act grand, this is a fairly simple matter.”
“And an annoying one at that.”
It was practically an open declaration of passing off a troublesome task.
However, the Crown Prince seemed rather pleased and closed the book he was reading.
“You always left the annoying tasks to me.”
“Did I… I don’t quite remember.”
“Well, I’m used to it now.”
I sat down beside the Crown Prince and casually asked.
“When would you like to see reality?”
“Hmm…”
The Crown Prince glanced back and forth between the towering pile of books and me.
“Just one more week…”
“Alright. Let’s go in a week.”
After setting the promise and bidding farewell to the Crown Prince, I left the library.
—
Read More at – GENZNOVEL.COM!!
PLEASE JOIN OUR DISCORD AND SUBSCRIBE THE ROLE TO RECEIVE LATEST NOTIFICATIONS!!
Click here -> https://discord.gg/S8c2kGVr2g
Comment